Gynecologic oncology
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Gynecologic oncology · Jun 2001
Identification of risk factors for requiring transfusion during front-line chemotherapy for ovarian cancer.
Anemia requiring red blood cell (RBC) transfusion is common in ovarian cancer (OC) patients receiving post-debulking surgery chemotherapy. Erythropoietin use has been shown to decrease transfusion requirements in patients receiving chemotherapy. We sought to identify pretreatment risk factors that could identify patients at increased risk for requiring RBC transfusion during first-line treatment for ovarian cancer. ⋯ Ovarian cancer patients frequently require RBC transfusion during postdebulking platinum-paclitaxel chemotherapy. Patients with prechemotherapy hemoglobin <10 g/dL and those receiving carboplatin-paclitaxel are at increased risk of requiring RBC transfusion. Early initiation of erythropoietin use in such patients may reduce transfusion needs.
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A descriptive study was performed to evaluate the variables which influence the quality of life of women with ovarian cancer undergoing chemotherapy treatment. ⋯ The EORTC QLQ-C30 can be used to test clinical assumptions and to influence treatment programs of women with ovarian cancer undergoing chemotherapy. The results confirmed the assumption that carboplatin has less of an impact on QoL than cisplatin. Also, the finding of improvements in QoL over time, for the women with recurrent disease, supports the use of carboplatin as palliative treatment. The differences observed in QoL between survivors and nonsurvivors 12 months after starting treatment may help identify high-risk patients for closer monitoring. Brief, structured QoL assessments before clinic appointments may be useful for improving the overall care of ovarian cancer patients.